The Southern and Middle Belt Leaders Forum on Sunday said that after reviewing all the arguments about the Ruga Settlements, it has come to the conclusion that the plan was “repugnant, repulsive and provocative”.
According to the group, the Ruga settlement initiative was a subtle attempt to “colonize the rest of Nigeria under the guise of promoting cattle rearing”.
The forum made its position known in a joint statement issued by Mr. Yinka Odumakin (South West); Prof Chigozie Ogbu (South East), Senator Bassey Henshaw (South South) and Dr. Isuwa Dogo (Middle Belt).
It insisted that cattle rearing is a “private business” that should not have the involvement of government, adding that government interested in the unity of the country should not dabble into such business which tends to promote one ethnic group over another.
The statement alleged that in the last four years, the herdsmen have turned non-Fulani communities into killings fields “with the government turning a blind eye to all their crimes”.
The forum challenged the government to name any court where the herdsmen were being tried.
It said, “We therefore reject any attempt to establish any Fulani colony within our space in Southern Nigeria and the Middle Belt. We warn all our Governors not to succumb to any pressure to cede an inch of our land for this awful project as any governor who does so would be seen as an enemy of the people he governs.“
“Constitutionally and as affirmed by the Supreme Court, all lands in each state are vested in the governor and not the Federal Government .
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